Internships

The Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics encourages all of its majors to consider doing an internship. The internship is an opportunity for the student to experience the real world and explore a career opportunity. Most students will do their internship in the summer between their junior and senior years, however, the experience may be completed during the spring or fall semesters.

An internship is not just a job! The internship experience includes a mentor who assists the student appreciate and understand his/her role in the business or agency. The mentor answers questions, assigns responsibilities, shares insights, and guides the student during his/her internship.

Some companies and agencies recruit interns on campus (Farm Credit Systems, National Agricultural Statistics Service and Servi-tech). Other companies will provide the job announcements and expect the student to contact them directly. Some students will set up their own internship with a company or in a position that they wish to explore.

The number of credits to be earned from an internship will depend upon the length of the internship and the duties and responsibilities of the intern. Students should coordinate their internship credits with their academic advisor. The internship is graded on a Pass/Fail basis and the student is required to maintain a daily journal, write a report evaluating his/her experience, and secure a letter of evaluation from the mentor.

Internship forms can be secured from the Office of the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics (B321 Clark). The following firms are some of the companies and agencies that have provided internship experiences:

American Cyanamid
Bank One
Cargill
Elanco Products Company
Farm Credit System
Gunnison Savings and Loan
John Deere
Monsanto
National Agricultural Statistics Service
Norwest Banks
Servi-tech
Shakel Ranch
Walt Disney World